-AN EXCITING AND INSPIRATIONAL WEEK WITH AN INTERDISCIPLINARY VIEW ON SPACE ACTIVITIES-
This summer 32 students (University, HBO and MBO) participated in the first edition of the LDE NL Space Campus Summer school, organised by NL Space Campus in collaboration with LDE Universities. A six-day programme introducing students to the various disciplines involved in the space industry.  It is the perfect programme for students from any background to get to know the space industry, grow their network and meet like minded students. They get a real taste of what working in the space industry might look like, by increasing students’ knowledge of various space disciplines and also strengthen their entrepreneurial skills by working on different projects.
The programme
During the week the students visited some of the space hotspots in the Zuid Holland region such as ESA ESTEC, EUSPA’s Galileo Reference Centre, SRON, Leiden University’s Law faculty & Old Observatory, Space Business Innovation Center, TNO, the TU Delft Aerospace & Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science faculties, Science[&]Technology, Unmanned Valley, PLNT Leiden and DECOS. During these visits they learned about space law, engineering & business, received a crash course in drone technology, lectures about black holes and the future of astronomy, a tour at ESTEC, building a cubesat from Nausolaris and much more. Students with different backgrounds worked in teams of eight students on dedicated challenges with topics such as Space Debris, Space for sustainability, Space instrumentation, and Space business. At the end of the week the teams presented their solutions and innovations to experts from the space industry.
Watch the after movie to get the full picture.
“The summer school is a great opportunity for students from all kinds of disciplines to get to know each other, to learn from each other and to inspire each other. I’m looking forward to next year’s edition!”, Peter Batenburg, LDE NL Space Campus Liaison.
“This first edition of the summer school brought us again a step further in strengthening the collaboration between students, lecturers, entrepreneurs and government in the field of space and therefore with the development of the NL Space Campus and its community. For students a great inspiration to get in touch with the diversity of the space sector and the endless possibilities in space related careers”, Esther Peters, Director NL Space Campus.
Connecting the Curious
Students were amazed by the programme and we received very positive feedback on the programme. For example about it being a great opportunity to meet like-minded people, getting many new sector connections for a later career and a great experience to enhance their knowledge on a wide range of (interdisciplinary) space subjects. Some felt newly inspired to face tomorrow’s challenges with space solutions and most were inspired by the many opportunities that the space industry has to offer.
Some of the comments received:
“The space summer school is an amazing way to get to know like-minded people from different backgrounds. It is a great combination of serious subjects where you can learn a lot about space, and fun time where you can talk to a diverse group of people while enjoying a drink”.
-Fourth year business student
“Really use this time to learn and deepen your knowledge, as well as getting to know new people and networking which could open many doors in the future”.
-First year Aerospace engineering student
“Building a CubeSat prototype, flying drones, and the workshop of coming up with a mission for the detection of methane with satellites was really entertaining and challenging, which I really liked”.
-First year Aerospace engineering student
“Join the program, especially if you have an interest in business!”
- Third year bachelor Space Law
“Do join! You will meet many people from various disciplines you would not get in contact with otherwise, and you go to places otherwise impossible to penetrate. And it is fun!”
- first year master student Space Engineering
“An amazing opportunity to get a multidisciplinary overview of the Dutch space industry, not just the technical side. An opportunity to connect with other amazing individuals passionate about space.”
- first year master space engineering
Organisation
The LDE NL Space Campus Summer School is a successful collaboration between LDE Universities and NL Space Campus. The programme would not have been possible without the support of many local space partners: SRON, TNO, ESA/ ESTEC, ESA BIC/SBIC, EUSPA GRC,, S&T, Airbus, PLNT, Unmanned Valley and DECOS.
Meet the students of 2022 at NL Space Campus Network&Drinks XL on September 29!
Feeling inspired and want to join our next LDE NL Space Campus Summer School in 2023? Come to our next N&D XL during The Space Week and meet the students who joined this year to ask them all you want to know!
